For over three decades, Rebecca Bor has struggled with arthritis. She was diagnosed with the condition in 1989, and though the pain in her joints is unceasing, it has never dampened her spirits. The diagnosis came about when Rebecca was on the cusp of adulthood, having just graduated from Kenya Utalii College with a Bachelor’s degree in Housekeeping and Laundry. She decided to continue navigating her energy towards positivity just as she had done when she was a little girl growing up in Nandi.
In 1990, Rebecca got a job as an assistant housekeeper with Tana and Athi River Development Authority (TARDA). She was posted at Masinga Dam Resort. As a hotelier, marketing was part of her job description, and she enjoyed the dynamics of it. Her role within this institution slowly evolved through the years, and in 2007, Rebecca realized she needed to compound her skills with more classroom experience. She enrolled into Kenya Methodist University for a three-year advanced diploma in business administration. With this new certification, Rebecca was promoted to the position of marketing officer in 2012, and assumed her new duties at TARDA’s headquarters in Nairobi.
As a marketing officer, her job required a lot of travel which inevitably resulted in interacting with new people. She was always on the move and loved the experiences her job offered. Unfortunately, this began to worsen her arthritis, and towards the end of 2016, Rebecca’s condition resulted in paralysis. She was confined to her bed for several months, and her inability to carry out the most mundane tasks left her severely depressed. During her recuperation, Rebecca fought to regain her mental health as well as her physical health. Her daily prayer was that if she got better, she would pour her energy into helping vulnerable members of society.
After countless physiotherapy sessions and use of alternative treatments, Rebecca slowly began regaining the use of her limbs. By early 2017, she had recovered from the paralysis, but her doctor warned her that too much strain on her body might cause her to relapse and negate her recovery efforts. When Rebecca returned to work, she informed her supervisor about her situation. TARDA was generous enough to help her comply with the doctor’s orders and reassigned her to become the sub-county coordinator for Starehe. This new role was not as physically demanding as her previous one, and Rebecca was grateful for it. Rebecca was in charge of the organization’s environmental conservation efforts within Starehe Sub-County, so she began working to rehabilitate the land around Nairobi River. Working as a sub county coordinator further placed her on the frontline of environmental work, and despite her gratitude for this position, Rebecca remembered the promise she had made to herself, and worked towards keeping it.
In 2018, Rebecca came across the Source Solution Integrated Program (SSIP), an organization working to support street families and also improve waste management for Nairobi River. Their mandate seemed to tie in well with TARDA’s conservation work, and in 2019, the two organizations partnered up to clean, conserve and beautify the area around Nairobi River. While working with SSIP, Rebecca began learning about their work with street connected youth. She would interact with the youth while on the tree planting exercises, and began getting more and more involved with this initiative. Rebecca began looking for ways to rehabilitate the river as well as the street families living around it.
Over recent months, Rebecca’s involvement with SSIP has grown beyond her work duties and she is happy to volunteer towards most of their efforts. She helps with the feeding programs in addition to fundraising for food supplies, donation of clothes, and organizing for medical camps. She is also involved in approaching various organizations that will help Source achieve their goal of doing away with homelessness, and looking into programs that can equip those living on the streets with skills they can use to generate an income.
Now with the pandemic at hand, SSIP is raising funds to accelerate the evacuation of these individuals from the streets. They are also working to provide street families with basic food and sanitary supplies needed at this time. All proceeds go towards ultimately making the streets of Nairobi safer and healthier.
Through her health condition, Rebecca has tapped into the humanitarian within her. Her efforts to help Nairobi’s street families have just began, and we are excited to share in her journey. Keep up the Paukwa Spirit, Rebecca!
